


Found you

by Vault_Emblem



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, CT-27-5555 | Fives | ARC-5555 Lives, Canon Divergence - Order 66, Gen, Palpabitch is death, Rescue Missions, Retelling of the Bad Batch arc, Sort Of, Trauma, cody appears but only in the first chapter, echo will appear later
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-24
Updated: 2021-01-14
Packaged: 2021-03-05 02:54:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 11,669
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25487305
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vault_Emblem/pseuds/Vault_Emblem
Summary: The Chancellor might’ve been found guilty of being a Sith Lord and Dooku might’ve been apprehended, but there are still some Separatist cells fighting. There aren’t many left, but this doesn’t mean that they have to act less cautious.Here’s the weird thing: for some reason, they seem to be fighting better now. This either means that there’s a spy in their ranks or, more likely, that they have found some source of intel.They have to investigate.
Relationships: CT-21-0408 | Echo & CT-27-5555 | Fives | ARC-5555, CT-21-0408 | Echo & CT-7567 | Rex, CT-27-5555 | Fives | ARC-5555 & Anakin Skywalker, CT-27-5555 | Fives | ARC-5555 & CT-5597 | Jesse, CT-27-5555 | Fives | ARC-5555 & CT-6116 | Kix, CT-27-5555 | Fives | ARC-5555 & CT-7567 | Rex
Comments: 15
Kudos: 81





	1. The Bad Batch

**Author's Note:**

> This was supposed to be something short about Fives and Echo meeting again, but then I've decided to add something before that and it became more or less a retelling of the arc, though I've written only the parts that would be different with Fives in it.  
> I still don't know if I'll make a chapter for each arc episode or if I'll be able to condense the next episode in one chapter. Depends on how long it turns out.

It’s still weird for Fives to be considered a war hero. Sure, he uncovered a deep conspiracy that would’ve resulted in the fall of the Republic, but going from “that di’kut Fives” to “hero of the Republic Fives” is a huge step.

What’s most weird is the amount of attention he’s getting now, and he means the positive kind of attention. That’s not even the weirdest part actually; what really bothers Fives is how tired he is of it already. It may be weird coming from Mr. Attention Whore himself, but that’s how he feels. He just doesn’t like the idea that he’s somehow more important that the rest of the vode.

Maybe that’s why he’s relieved when action calls again.

The Chancellor might’ve been found guilty of being a Sith Lord and Dooku might’ve been apprehended, but there are still some Separatist cells fighting. There aren’t many left, but this doesn’t mean that they have to act less cautious.

Here’s the weird thing: for some reason, they seem to be fighting better now. Might be desperation, but their tactics have changed; they’re more efficient, almost as if they could predict what the Republic’s next step will be. This either means that there’s a spy in their ranks or, more likely, that they have found some source of intel.

It’s Rex the one who approaches Fives first. They’ve been dancing around this theory for a while, but neither of them have had the courage to openly speak about it, at least until now. It’s far-fetched at best, but the evidence is there; besides, they’d both be lying if they said they don’t want it to be true - especially Fives.

_“I think Echo’s alive.”_

Here it is, what both of them have been thinking for a while. Rex’s voice is hesitant, and Fives can’t decide if it’s because he fears he won’t listen to him or - more likely - that he isn’t sure himself on how true this statement is.

“I think so too,” he quickly replies then, “You two have been working on most of these plans, and now somehow the Seppies can anticipate our moves. It can’t be a coincidence.” It would be too convenient.

It may sound unlikely, but let’s not forget who orchestrated all this. If the Supreme Chancellor himself can be guilty of being a Sith Lord, then it’s possible that what remains of the Separatists are using Echo for their strategies.

As Fives and Rex exchange a look, however, they understand what the most difficult part of this will be: making the others believe them.

The first people to be informed are General Skywalker and Cody.

Skywalker is still recovering from the discovery of the Chancellor’s true nature - they were pretty close after all, and damn now that they know the whole story, isn’t that creepy? - but he listens to their thesis with an open mind, even if it’s clear he doesn’t entirely believe it. He knows about loss and he understands why they would want to believe that, but still…

“Sometimes people just die. No matter how much you want to, you can’t bring the dead back,” he begins, thinking about all the people he has failed to protect, and it’s exactly because he understands that he continues, “But if you think that it’s worth it, we can investigate.”

Relief surges through both the clones.

“Yessir!”

Differently from Anakin, Cody goes full skeptic immediately.

“We can’t jeopardize everything just for this.”

Fives greets his teeth. How dares he speak like that about a brother? After all they’ve been fighting for he just wants to leave one of them behind?

“You can’t talk like that!” he begins, moving towards Cody with ill intent, something that Rex picks up, so he immediately grabs his arm to stop him before he does something he will regret.

“Fives, not now!”

Cody looks at them and he sighs. He understands, he truly does, but they still have to draw a line, or else this will blow up out of proportions.

“It’s not that I…” he begins defensively, but he stops himself. There’s no point in answering aggression with aggression; they’re all tired - even in its last stages the war is taking a toll on them - and doing so would help nobody. “I know it’s hard being the one who survives. It’s a burden that no regular folk can understand.” He looks at Fives. “But we can’t let this affect the wellbeing of who remains.”

At those words, Fives deflates a bit, even though it’s obvious in his eyes that he hasn’t accepted the situation yet, and honestly Cody can’t blame him. If anything happened to Rex or any of his batch mates - even Fox - he would find himself in a very similar state.

“Even if we try to do something about it, how many brothers will die for something that we’re not even sure about?”

His words are harsh, but they need to be. The sacrifice of more troopers is something they cannot afford.

Silence falls between the three, each one lost in their own thoughts.

Unexpectedly, it’s Cody the one who breaks it. His mind works constantly, and he may have found an idea to solve this problem without losing too many lives. Besides, he simply is unable to say no to Rex.

“If you truly think that this is key to understand why the Separatists are on a winning streak, then I suppose we could send a small team to investigate it.”

“A _small_ team?” Rex asks, careful in his enthusiasm. Cody may have given in but that doesn’t mean they’re done.

“Yes, a small team,” Cody replies, and it’s obvious that he has something in mind already, and when Rex asks him, he just smiles, “You’ll see. I need to make a call.”

Clone Force 99. Nobody in Torrent Company has heard of this name.

“99, eh? Nice touch,” Rex comments, smiling sadly as he remembers his fallen vod. It’s nice seeing that someone has found a way to honor him. Fives is smiling too.

“Oh, I knew him well,” he begins, “He was the only one who believed in my cadet squad… I can’t believe it’s been so long already.” It feels like centuries have passed since 99’s death. He wonders what he would think about him; would he be proud? He’d say that he did his best, that he’s done so much good, but he still let so many vode die without being able to do anything about it. Maybe, however, he can at least save one of the people he thought he’d lost.

“Oh right, you were underdogs before coming here!” Jesse exclaims, recalling the few stories he and Echo told, “You never told us much about your Kamino days, _vod_.”

Fives chuckles, lightly shoving his brother - who has begun leaning closer to him - with one shoulder, colliding with Jesse’s ARC trooper armor - yeah, the di’kut really managed to get promoted.

“That’s because you were only looking for blackmail material!” he chuckles.

The truth is that he and Echo have always been a bit jealous of their shared past. They didn’t do it with malice, but it was something that tied them to each other, something special that only them shared. Remembering all the early Domino squad shenanigans was always a special occurrence for them. Even after Echo’s death - but he’s not dead, Fives knows it - he never felt like sharing that part of his past; it didn’t feel right without his brother.

“Getting back to the original topic,” Kix interrupts, “I’ve heard some things about this Clone Force 99.”

Trust Kix to do some digging before getting briefed on anything. That’s actually reassuring, at least they won’t walk in whatever Cody has planned blind.

“So?” Fives encouraged him, “What have you heard?”

“They have a 100% success rate, so they’ve got that going for them,” Kix begins, though he doesn’t look that happy about it as he should be.

“There’s a ‘but’ in here, isn’t it?”

“Well, the thing is… I haven’t found much except for that,” Kix reveals, “Even their existence is barely known!”

“Who’s their general?” Fives asks, curious and suspicious at the same time. He’s learned to be wary of secretive stuff; they usually never bode well.

“I don’t know,” Kix replies, “I don’t think they have one.”

Fives moves his gaze to Rex. What has Cody gotten them into this time? His Captain, on the other end, just shrugs.

“This means we’ll just have to find out information when we’ll meet them.”

“It doesn’t worry you that they seemingly work alone?” Jesse asks.

“They must have their reasons…” is what Rex replies with, making it clear that this is the end of the conversation, “You should get prepared, now. We’ll be departing shortly.”

“Sir yes sir!”

They meet up with Cody shortly after that.

“So, Clone Force 99, eh?” Rex asks, making Cody smirk.

“I see you already did your homework,” he comments.

“Blame Kix.” That earns a chuckle from both of them, before Rex continues, “How come nobody knows nothing about them?”

“They’re defective clones with desirable mutations. They call themselves ‘The Bad Batch’.” Huh, that doesn’t exactly spark confidence, but if Cody trusts them, then they must be worth it.

An aircraft lands - and Fives swears, the pilot must be worse the Skywalker because it’s a messy landing at best - and the main door opens.

There’s the sound of steps and four clones in full armor step outside to meet with them. They haven’t shown their faces yet but they already look different - it must be their demeanour. One of them is particularly _huge_ \- just what the hell did they feed him on Kamino?

Fives straightens his posture, watching in silence. So this is Clone Force 99.

That’s official, Fives hates these dudes.

Well, not really, or at least, not all of them. Hunter seems cool and badass - not as much as _their_ captain of course - Wrecker is a force of nature, Tech seems chill… Yeah, the only one he actually fully hates is Crosshair. He doesn’t like people who act like they’re better than everybody else, and Crosshair surely seems to believe that he is; besides, there’s so much venom in the way he calls them _regs_ that doesn’t sit well with Fives at all.

A peek at Jesse and Kix makes it pretty evident that he isn’t the only perplexed one. Jesse shoots at him and annoyed glance, while Kix just shrugs, already resigned to the incoming headache that this mission will cause him. Fives tries to reassure them with a smile, even though he must not be doing a great job.

Oh come on! How bad can it be?

Aaaand they lost the Marshal Commander already. Maybe Fives should’ve just shut his mouth.

At least Kix will stay with him until aid arrives, which also means that they’ve lost the medic already. They’ll have to be very careful.

Still, did those other shebs really have to show off like that? They could’ve easily handled the droids coming at them without them having to try so hard to be cool!

Not that Fives doesn’t appreciate some help - if it keeps them alive a bit more, why shouldn’t he? - but he doesn’t want to give them more excuses to gloat, especially since their main target seems to be the captain, which is _not ok_.

What makes him more annoyed is that, deep down, he admires these dudes. They seem to have a plan for everything. He wonders how they would fair with General Skywalker and his “screw plans” policy. Who knows, maybe he’d manage to throw them off the loop.

At least he can admit that they’re competent, though he refuses to say it out loud. He doesn’t want to verbally harass them like Kix and Jesse are doing, but he also won’t do anything to defend them. They might be competent and all, but they’re still asshole.

“You can’t talk to Captain Rex like that!”

Damn, Fives gets distracted for one second, one _kriffing_ second, and hell breaks loose. Of course, it’s Crosshair’s and his bitch mouth’s fault.

Jesse’s so close to hit him, but Wrecker’s on him in an instant, picking him up from the ground. Now, if it was just a simple discussion, Fives would’ve let it go - he would’ve bitched about it internally but he would’ve let it go. This, this is different; if that’s a fight what they want, they will have a fight.

He bolts up, followed by Kix, whose intentions seem more towards stopping the fight than to take part in it, but Fives is having none of this. Insults and mocking are one thing, touching a brother is another.

“Let him down!” he yells stepping towards Wrecker. He barely registers Kix beings pushed by Crosshair, and if he dares to try the same thing on him he swears, he’ll snap him like the twig he is.

He may not have their “desirable mutations” but he can still kick their asses if he wants to, and look what a coincidence, he really does right now.

It takes Hunter to defuse the situation before it ends up in a scuffle. Damn, they’re acting like a bunch of shinies.

There’s still the mission to focus on, and Fives tries to keep his composure, ignoring the Bad Batch altogether.

As they prepare to leave he goes to check in on Kix, kneeled beside Cody. He’s applying some bacta on his wound.

“I don’t have much, but it’s better than nothing,” the medic mutters, clearly not happy about the situation. If they lose the kriffing Marshall Commander, it’ll be _bad_. At least help is on its way, so hopefully they won’t have to wait for too long; all Kix has to do is to make sure that he stays alive until they arrive.

“You sure you can hold up?” Fives asks.

“You’re the ones going into danger, not me.”

“Careful Kix, I might start thinking you’re jealous that we’re getting some action, unlike you.”

“Kriff off!” Kix goes to give Fives a light punch on his knee, but as the smile on his lips suggest, it’s a light-hearted gesture. It’s nice being able to tease each other like this again; there was too much tension before.

They both chuckle, but then Kix gets serious again.

“And tell Jesse not to do anything too stupid,” he warns Fives, who rolls his eyes at those words, even though he’s still smiling.

“Tell him yourself,” he replies, not because he won’t tell, but just because he wants to be a little shit.

“I already did, but knowing him he needs a reminder.”

“I’ll tell him you said that.”

“As if he doesn’t know already what I think of him,” Kix huffs, only to look at Fives as he adds, “Please, be careful.”

“We will, Kix, I promise. We didn’t come this close to ending the war just to die.”

Fives takes a moment to himself to focus, but judging by the heavy steps coming towards him, he will be joined by Jesse soon. He was never good at stealth and ARC training sure didn’t help with that.

“You ready?” his brother asks once he’s in hearing range. Fives turns towards him.

“Yeah I am.” At first it seems the end of the conversation, then Fives remembers what Kix asked him to do, “Kix wants to remind you not to do anything too stupid. Weird that he said ‘too stupid’ and not just ‘stupid’, almost like he knew already that you’re going to do something dumb anyway.”

“Ah ah,” Jesse says, mocking a laugh, face completely unimpressed, “When did _you_ become such a killjoy? Last time I checked you were all for crazy battle tactics.”

“It’s not that I don’t like them anymore, but…”

But he almost died. Sure, he’s risked his life countless times in this war, but this last time really did a number of him, and that’s only scratching the surface of what’s going on in Fives’ head. Now that he’s so close to see finally the results of not only his efforts, but the vode’s as well, he doesn’t want to kick the bucket; he doesn’t want to be just another casualty to add to the list.

There’s also Echo’s deal. If he’s truly alive and out there, Fives wants to find him. Someone will have to take care of him, and that someone is going to be him; he owes him that after leaving him for dead at the Citadel. He promised himself that he won’t die before reaching him, even at the cost of foregoing his usual battle tactics.

He should say something, trying to explain himself, but as Jesse gently rests a hand on his shoulder, squeezing it, he understands that he doesn’t need to. In the end he had revealed to him and Kix too about his and Rex’s theory about Echo; needless to say that they’ve been enthusiastic at the prospect of having their brother back.

“I know, vod. I was just teasing you,” Jesse says, “And I solemnly swear that I won’t commit any reckless act… At least unless the situation really calls for it.”

“I’ll hold you to it,” Fives smirks, “And now let’s show these shebs how Torrent does things.”

“Yessir!”

It went better than expected. By diving their forces they’ve managed to distract the guards enough to infiltrate the command center. Hell, they even managed to get a getaway shuttle - Fives supposes that even Crosshair serves a purpose after all.

Still, Rex has been weirdly closed off since their departure, something that doesn’t sit well with Fives, who approaches him, wanting to know how his captain is fairing.

“Something wrong?”

“I heard his voice,” Rex says, turning to him, “Fives, I heard him back there. I asked who we were speaking to and I heard him.”

So this means…

“Echo’s alive. It’s all true.”

It takes Fives a moment to process Rex’s words, and when he does he feels dizzy. So it’s all true; what was once just a mere hope has become the truth.

Echo’s alive and Rex managed to contact him. This means that he’s in Separatists’ hands. He can’t help but to wonder what they have done to him, if he’s fine, if he’s safe, even though he knows that this kind of pointless worry will only make things worse for him.

Still, now that he knows he’s truly alive, he’ll do everything he can to rescue him. He owes him that much.

“I suppose this means the mission is far from over, captain.”

Rex nods. “It only just begun.”


	2. A distant Echo

Fives hates waiting, especially in these kinds of situations. They should be rescuing Echo, but all they can do now it to wait around until they get permission like some kind of kids!

The idea of leaving alone comes to mind, but even if he manages to reach Skako Minor - that’s where Echo’s signal came from - what could he do against entire squadrons of droids? They’re about to mess with the Techno Union, which means that things are going to get ugly. No, as much as he hates admitting it, he needs everyone, even the Shebs Batch.

The only problem, now, is that Rex has somehow disappeared. Where’s the Captain now? He doubts he’s in his quarters - why would he be there of all places? - but he can’t find him anywhere.

A hand plants itself on his shoulder, forcing him to stay still and stop pacing.

“You’re going to burn a hole in your boots if you keep up like that,” Jesse says, “Just calm down.”

“I am calm,” Fives snaps back. He hates when people tell him to calm down; if anything, they only succeed in irritating him more. He tries to pull his shoulder free, but Jesse’s hold is too strong.

“You really are not,” he says, which is rich coming from him of all people. Jesse has never exactly been a paramount of patience.

Seeing the worry in his brother’s eyes, Fives’ aggressive stance deflates.

“Look, I just want to be over with this part,” he says, “We should’ve moved already.”

“I know, but it’s not like we can do whatever we want. There are strategies to be made.” Fives hates this kind of reasoning because it’s so cold: it makes war look like more like a series of calculations than the gruesome affair that it actually is. Still, Jesse is right - for once - but this doesn’t mean that Fives has to be happy with it, hence the pacing and the death stares; he’s sure he’s scared shitless a few shinies that have tried to approach him. He should apologize to them, but they really had picked a very bad time to bother him.

“Hey,” Jesse calls him then, a smirk on his face, “If you’re looking for a way to pass time, why don’t we play some sabacc? Want to steal more credits out of you.”

“So you admit that was stealing!” Fives exclaims, playfully shoving his vod, “Besides, now I know your tricks. You won’t fool me this time,” he adds with a confidence that makes Jesse chuckle.

“We’ll see…”

Thankfully for Fives’ credits, they’re stopped by captain Rex before they can make their way to the barracks.

“Captain, where were--”

“We have no time for that, Fives,” Rex interrupts him, “We’re leaving.”

Fives still doesn’t understand if they’ve actually gotten clearance to depart or if general Skywalker is doing as he pleases - it wouldn’t be the first time. In the end, it doesn’t matter, as long as they get to Skako Minor and rescue Echo.

He’s not entirely comfortable with the idea of having left Jesse behind, but general Kenobi and general Windu are going to need all the help they can and Jesse is one of the best. Whatever happens, he’ll surely make it out alive, or at least Fives hopes so. He really doesn’t want to lose another brother…

“Did you hear what he said? Does it mean he knows?”

“Sir, I really have no idea--”

Those are clearly the general and the captain’s voices that Fives is hearing as he makes his way to the ship’s main corridor. A glance is enough to confirm this theory: general Skywalker and captain Rex seem to be having a heated conversation. What are they talking about?

“Did you snitch on me, Rex? Were you the one who told Obi-Wan?” Skywalker accuses, making Rex spout indignantly at the idea that he would betray his trust like that. If nobody intervenes, things might escalate, which prompts Fives to walk up to them.

“Sirs, is there something wrong?” he asks, feigning innocence, like he hasn’t accidentally heard part of their conversation.

There’s a moment of pause, then the two look at each other.

“It’s nothing, Fives,” Anakin says then, leaving his previous position to do who knows what - probably going to speak with Hunter.

“What was that about?” Fives asks once he and Rex are alone. General Skywalker is known for his temperament, but there are only few things that would set him off even against Rex, and one of these things are…

“Was this about him and Senator Amidala?”

“General Kenobi finally snapped and made it clear that he knows.” Ah, so that’s what happened.

Skywalker and Amidala. They’re the worst kept secret in the whole GAR. The only way the Jedi Council hasn’t approached the general about this yet is probably because they think that looking the other way is the best solution which, in the end, might’ve been true: all this talk about attachments, and yet Skywalker, the Jedi who you could say has the most attachments, hasn’t turned on them, not even when the Chancellor tried to persuade him to his side by using his fear of losing his loved ones. If he had cracked, things would’ve gone very differently and Fives doubts he’d even be alive to tell the tale. Who knows.

It’s also true that Palpatine didn’t really get much time to talk before being shot from behind - he probably wasn’t expecting the Guard to turn on him, but Fox looked particularly smug when he took the shot. He had underestimated the clones, and this is what ruined him. A fitting end.

Before Fives’ thoughts can wander even more, Rex recalls him to attention.

“We should regroup with the others,” he says and, as always, he’s right.

“Yes, sir. Let’s go.”

They land into a storm. Just their luck.

Thankfully Tech is skilled enough to make them land safely. It was still a better landing than when the general flies.

“Nice job vod,” Five mutters, giving Tech’s shoulder a nice pat. Out of all the Bad Batchers, he’s the one he likes the most.

Tech seems surprised by such familiarity coming from him, but apart from looking at him like he’s seen a ghost, he doesn’t comment on it except from an awkward “thank you”.

And now, let’s see what kind of banthashit they’ll have to deal with now.

So long the General has only being kidnapped and rescued. Basically, nothing new.

If things keep going this way, maybe they’ll be done by the end of the day with only a few things majorly blowing up. Nothing Fives hasn’t experienced already.

These Poletecs are adamant on not wanting war on their planet, and to be frank, Fives can’t exactly blame them. Still, they’re here not to bring war but to save a brother, so if they’ll have to fight in order to do it, he won’t hesitate.

Tech’s the one that comes to the rescue again, thanks to his technology. An immediate translator like that would be mighty useful to have - how many times did Fives try to flirt with somebody at 79, only to find out they don’t speak the same language? Not that it usually isn’t that much of a problem, but still it would be something nice. Maybe if he asks kindly Tech would build one for him too?

At least now they’ve gotten safe passage, and from what Fives has understood, they’re even going to take them to Purkoll? Talk about lucky.

It would’ve been nice if they could help out more, but Fives supposed they can’t exactly ask much out of them. They’ll have to make do with that little they have.

Fives cracks his knuckles and adjusts the helmet on his face. Time to put his ARC training to use.

Everything was going great… until it doesn’t anymore. Tech has lost Echo’s signal, and that small hope they all felt is beginning to get overshadowed by doubt again, not for Fives, though, and not for Rex. Fives’ glad that the captain is backing him up as he keeps telling them that something must’ve happened and that they need to hurry up.

Then Crosshair opens his mouth.

“You feelings are getting in the way because you left him for dead at the Citadel.”

Fives blood begins to boil. He remembers that moment too vividly - there hasn’t been a day that he hasn’t thought about that. The General’s voice echoes in his head, the continuous screams and the “we have to keep going!”. He takes his first step towards Crosshair.

“We wouldn’t have if he had a choice! We couldn’t--”

“Oh, I don’t blame you, I would’ve left him for dead too.” Fives swears, this guy-- “Besides, he’s just another _reg_.”

_Just another reg..._

Anger takes over Fives. This time he doesn’t even try to rebuttal, he just throws himself at Crosshair with all his weight, making them tumble along the hill.

He’s been wanting to punch this asshole’s face since he first laid his eyes on him, and now he finally can. If he wasn’t so angry he would’ve smirked hearing his pained noises, but he’s too busy punching him to care.

“You don’t know what we’ve been through! You don’t know!”

Even as Crosshair tries to break free, there’s little he can do against Fives’ superior strength. ARC training really paid off.

Then he feels someone pulling him up, and as he tries to pull away, he recognizes Wrecker’s voice telling him to take it someone not his size. As if he’s afraid of him.

“Put him down!” Rex shouts at him, shaking him so that he loses his grip on Fives, who lands on the ground but gets up immediately, ready to throw down again. Wrecker’s attention, however, has moved to Rex; he clearly hasn’t appreciated the way his captain interfered, even though he had been the first one to put himself into a fight that didn’t concern him. It doesn’t matter, Fives can take care of him too.

“You’ll be a lot smaller when I’m through with you!” Rex shouts, maintaining the aggressive stance towards Wrecker. Fives has rarely seen him lose his cool like this and he almost wishes Jesse was here to witness it - he’ll just have to tell him when they come back. Still, it’s nice of his captain to stand up for him, especially against these assholes.

“That’s enough!”

General Skywalker’s voice echo with not exactly rage, but definitely irritation. The Jedi has put himself between Wrecker and the other two clones. “We’re supposed to work together, not getting into fights like this!”

He’s right, of course, even though if anything this makes things worse: if Skywalker of all people is telling you to be more responsible, then things must be _bad_.

The general sighs, a defeated look in his eyes, then he asks the Bad Batch to scout ahead, a clear excuse to be left alone with Rex and Fives.

“Sir,” Fives begins immediately once they are alone, “You heard him. I couldn’t--”

“I know Fives,” Skywalker interrupts him, “I don’t like what he said either, but that’s no excuse to act like that.”

As Rex apologizes for the show they’ve just given, Five has to bite his tongue in order not to snap at the general that he can’t say stuff like that, not when he’s done the same on other occasions. It’s unfair and he knows it, but he’s not perfect and sometimes you have to be petty to win.

At least the general seems to understand their situation. “Listen,” he sighs, “I know this mission means a lot to you, it means a lot to me too. If Echo’s truly alive, then it’s our priority to get him out of there, however… We have to be prepared in case this is just a trap, understood?”

“Yes sir.” Rex replies. Skywalker then proceeds to put a hand on Rex’s shoulder and the other on Fives’.

“I want him to be alive as much as you do, but if it turns out he isn’t, I need to know that you’ll be able to handle it. Can you?”

“We will, sir,” Rex says, “ _If_ he turns out dead, we’ll handle it.”

“Good,” Skywalker replies, his voice soft with obvious concern. He turns to Fives then. “And you, Fives?”

It takes him longer that it should to reply. He knows that there are many chances that yes, this is all a trap, but he _has_ to believe that Echo is alive - someone has to. Besides, it wouldn’t be the first he has a hunch that, although highly improbable, turns out to be true.

“Yes I… I’ll handle it,” he says eventually, because if it’s really true that Echo’s dead, it will hurt, but eventually he’ll have to move on. His brother wouldn’t like it if he spent his entire life mourning him, or worse getting injured because he was too busy being sad to concentrate on the mission.

He feels Skywalker’s grip tighten, but not too much, just enough to be comforting.

“I’ll be fine sir. Really.”

The general nods, then he smiles. It’s that kind of smile that means trouble, the one who usually give Rex headaches because it means that he’s going to do something stupid.

“Alright, let’s go now. Wouldn’t want to be outshined, eh, guys?”

Rex and Fives share _a look_.

“General’s right,” Fives points out, a mischievous smile mirroring Skywalker’s on his face. For once, even Rex seems on board with this.

“Yeah, let’s go.”

Once they all reach the tower, they finally manage to pick up Echo’s signal again. It doesn’t mean that it’s all good, but Fives will take what he can get.

If there’s even the smallest chance that Echo’s alive, then it’s all worth it.

Tech - the only valid Bad Batcher, Fives will never stop saying it - manages to hack the door open, which is good because at least they can get in undetected.

Fives has never been fond of stealth missions but he understands their importance. Eh, this reminds him of that time when he and Hardcase had to sneak in that umbaran… _Hardcase_.

Fives shakes his head. That’s not the time to think about his fallen brother.

Fortunately he gets distracted from that by Wrecker’s hesitation in front of the elevator. Fives can barely suppresses a chuckle at the discovery that big strong Wrecker’s afraid of heights, but as soon as Hunter suggests holding his hand he doesn’t hold back anymore, gaining a punch on his shoulder from an angry Wrecker - though given the standards it’s a pretty light punch.

“You got something to say?” he says, clearly challenging him. As if Fives is going to fall back.

“I can hold your other hand if you want.”

At that, even Hunter chuckles; the sergeant thankfully puts a hand on Wrecker’s shoulder, stopping him before he can attack Fives again. All that’s left for the big guy is to grumble that he hates everybody there.

Ah the irony of general Skywalker telling them this is a stealth mission, only for the elevator’s doors to open and reveal a group of droids outside, too close not to spot them.

Of course Wrecker, the big oaf, throws himself at them, screaming without a care in the world. Ok that he wanted to crush some droids, but what the kriff anyway.

“So much for stealth,” Rex comments, using the I’m-so-done-with-this voice Fives is very familiar with. They look at each other and he shrugs. Might as well make themselves useful.

They all move out, firing their blasters. They still have a chance of not blowing it if they manage to kill everything fast enough. Fives manages even to steal a couple of kills from Crosshair - and he notes to himself that he must never make him forget it.

Nobody is impressed with the way Wrecker begins to shout after destroying the droids. He at least has the decency to look embarrassed about it.

He even apologizes, though Fives doubts he’s really sorry.

Damn, he and Hardcase would’ve gotten along splendidly.

Of course, since things were going _so splendidly_ , there’s a new problem: Tech is able to track Echo’s signal only during intel transmission, which makes him harder to find.

“Damn it!” Fives exclaims, and he would’ve punched the wall in rage if Rex hadn’t grabbed his wrist. They’re so close and yet so far!

“Calm down, Fives. We’ll find him.”

“Alright,” the general calls them back to attention, “We’re splitting up. Search for every door and, if you find Echo, contact the others.”

He moves his gaze to Fives, making it clear that this last part is addressing him in particular. “We go in together, just in case there’s trouble.”

Fives nods, but he already knows that, depending on the situation, he’ll decide later whether to consider that an order or just a mere suggestion.

The room Fives’ searches is empty, but that won’t stop him. He’s already rushing outside, moving to the next room, when Tech announces that Echo’s signal is back.

They follow it, arriving in front at a double door. Echo must be inside! Fives rushes to it, trying to open it, but it doesn’t budge!

To make things worse, the viewscreen next to the door activates, showing them Wat Tambor’s ugly mug.

The way he’s talking about Echo like it’s just a robot, an algorithm, makes Fives’ blood boil. If he gets his hands on him he’ll make sure he won’t survive the encounter.

He had forgotten how scary captain Rex can get when he’s angry; he believes every word he says about leaving that place only with Echo.

Oh no, they have company now - so many droids. They’re left with no choice but to fight.

Thankfully the general has finally reached them, helping them getting rid of the droids faster. Still, this is no easy feat: there’s too many droids and so little of them. In this case Fives is really glad that the Bad Batch is with them, because they’re handling things spectacularly, so much that they actually manage to get rid of the droids in record time…

No, reinforcements are coming. Kriff.

Good thing Tech’s working on opening the door.

They just have to resist a little bit longer.

As soon as the doors open, Fives and Rex rush to it. Since they aren’t incompetent they don’t do so blindly, and they keep their weapon ready, eyes on the lookout. Getting ambushed now won’t do at all.

They stumble upon an empty huge room, a lab definitely, but what gets everyone’s attention is a certain stasis chamber… Is Echo in there?!

“I don’t like the look of this,” Tech comment, very helpfully.

“Just open it, please,” Fives begs. If Echo’s in there they need to pull him out!

He can feel the weight of Rex resting his hand on his pauldron, an even though he can see his expression under the helmet, the way he inclines his head his enough for Fives to understand that he wants to know if he’s fine. He nods. Yeah, he’s fine.

The chamber’s about to be opened soon.

“I’m picking up a life form in there.”

It’s Echo, it has to be Echo…

Fives can’t believe his eyes. He… doesn’t know what to say.

That _thing_ that has gotten out of the stasis chamber, still attached to it by wires, is… Echo?

He looks terrible: he’s pale, so skinny that he could see the bones, head shaved, gaze unfocused like he hadn’t even realized they’re there, and… prosthesis at his arm and his legs.

Fives is going to kill the entire Techno Union.

Thankfully, Rex manages to recover from the shock and springs into action, ordering Tech to find a way to safely unplug Echo from this machine. He begins working on getting him down, and after shaking his head, trying to focus, Fives joins him.

“Echo? Echo are you there?” he calls out, but there’s no response coming from him.

He feels like he’s going to be sick. What have they done to him?

It’s his fault. This is all his fault.

He shouldn’t have left him at the Citadel. He should’ve tried harder.

Both he and Rex remove their helmets, hoping that maybe he will recognize them like this. Now Fives can see how horrified Rex is; well, he feels the same.

It’s then that Echo begins to talk, but his voice is so low and broken that Fives can barely understands what he’s saying. He can only catch “Citadel”.

“No! No!” he begins to say, face panicking. Fives doesn’t know what the best course of action is, but he can’t stay idle and watch his brother suffer.

He gently puts a hand on his shoulder - he’s so _cold_ \- and tries to call for him again, this time without raising his voice, no matter how much he wants to scream.

“Echo? Can you hear me?”

Nothing.

“It’s me, Fives!”

Still nothing.

“I’m here, Echo. Talk to me please!”

“… Fives?” A flash of recognition has passed through Echo’s eyes, and now he looks like he’s actually seeing them. “Rex?”

“Yes, I’m here,” the captain says, scooting closer to Echo.

When Echo speaks again, with that voice so soft, Fives feels tears prickling at the side of his eyes, but he fights them back. Seeing him cry is the last thing Echo needs rights now.

“You came back for me.”

It breaks Fives’ heart. Yes, they came back to him, but after how many years? If only they had known before…

“Yes, yes we did,” Rex replies, and Fives can easily sense from his voice that he too is close to completely breaking down. They have to be strong for Echo.

“Thought you’d get rid of me that easily, vod?” he attempts to joke, and he doubts anyone has ever felt the relief he’s feeling when Echo chuckles.

There are still some things he wants to say, so many things he wants to do.

There’s also the question of having to come back, which is another big problem on its own, but now that they’ve found Echo, Fives feels unstoppable. It wouldn’t be good dying right when they’re so close to succeeding.

“We’re going to get you home. Whatever happens, I’ll keep you safe.” He goes to take his brothers hand, squeezing it with determination.

“ _I promise_.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Boy has been found


	3. On the Wings of Keeradaks

They’re still trying to break Echo free.

Fives has been fussing over his brother all this time, checking on his vitals and everything else. Echo isn’t much talkative but he will sometimes say that he’s good; if he wasn’t in such disastrous conditions Fives would’ve smacked him on the head because he _clearly_ isn’t fine, but hey, at least he’s talking.

Rex is right beside him, reminding him not to overtax Echo too much. He’s right of course, but there’s just so much Fives wants to say or do that it’s hard for him to remain still. He has taken Echo’s hand and he’s not letting go. No matter what, he won’t.

He’s so focused on Echo that he notices the general’s arrival only when he speaks.

“How is he, Rex?”

He sounds worried, and Fives can see in his eyes that he too wants to do something to help, he just doesn’t know what.

Fives lets Rex do the talking while he goes back to Echo, caressing his arm with a carefulness that he’s sure would offend Echo if he noticed it. It’s just that he looks so fragile now, like he could break at any given moment. Besides, the last thing he wants to do now is to accidentally hurt him more than he’s already hurting.

He must have endured so much…

Fives has no idea about what he would’ve done if he was in Echo’s shoes. He doubts he would’ve resisted this long, his vod has always been stronger than him.

They aren’t even able to contact an extraction squad. Well, they knew already this was very likely to happen, but still, Fives wouldn’t have minded it if for once things went their way.

It’s not too bad, they can manage on their own. They’ve done it already and they’ll do it again, he has to remind himself of this.

The only problem is that Echo’s not able to walk, not yet at least, but that won’t be a problem either: Fives can carry him with ease.

Nevermind, they’re locked here.

Things can’t go well if they stay here for too long, but for now they can only seal the doors hoping that it will at least slow the upcoming droids down enough to grant them some time to think about a plan.

Tech still needs more time, the problem is that they don’t have more time! Things are beginning to get pretty bad, but at least Fives is sure of one thing: they won’t go down without a fight. He refuses to give up now that he’s found Echo again.

“I got it! We can unplug him now!” Bless you Tech.

There’s something so heartbreaking in the slow pliant way Echo turns around, but there’s no time to think about that as Fives and Rex proceed to unplug him. It’s obvious that this process is hurting him, and Fives tries to sustain him with his other arm, not wanting him to fall down.

Still, the last plug, the one directly on his head, must be the worse one, because Echo screams, and if it wasn’t for Fives he would’ve fallen. After a moment his body, which was so tense before, begins to relax, and Echo begins to breathe again.

“Rex… Fives…” he calls, voice still weak but not as weak from before.

“What is it?” Fives asks, worried that they’ve done something bad, as he helps Echo to sit down again.

“I’ve got a big headache,” Echo says, with one of those cheeky smiles Fives has missed so much. Was this all he wanted to say?

“Damn you Echo, you scared me!” Fives exclaims, trying to ignore Rex’s chuckle at those words, but he can’t and eventually he finds himself smiling as well.

Well, he supposes he can let this slide. Just this once.

“It’s better to feel something than nothing, old buddy,” Rex says and yeah, at least on this they can all agree.

“It’s a touching reunion, guys, but we need to get out of here and we need to do it now!”

And Skywalker is right as well. The only problem is: how are they going to accomplish that? Their only way outside has been sealed!

Unexpectedly, it’s Echo the one with the key to help them. There’s a vent up in the ceiling that leads to the cooling systems. They can used that to make their exit.

“Nice job, Echo,” Fives mutters, gently patting on his shoulders. Echo smiles at him and all Fives wants to do is to pull him closer in his arms and stay there as long as he can, feeling him close, but he knows that now it’s not the right time for that. They have to wait.

Well, whatever they need to do they need to do it quick, because the droids have managed to reach the front door.

Again, it’s Echo that saves the day: the prosthesis on his arm - and Fives still has to come around the fact that he has prosthesis now - can be used to control machinery, much like a droid’s one. He’s the one that gets the door open.

Now they only need to get up there, and Wrecker seems to know a way to do it, which consists of simply throwing them up. At least he’s useful for something.

“Come here,” Fives says to Echo, letting him settle against his back and grabbing his legs, “Hold on tight.”

Echo nods; he won’t let go.

Fives was expecting for Wrecker to be at least a bit more delicate with him, since he’s holding Echo, but no, no special treatment for him. Thankfully he still manages to hold tight and not fall.

“How are you doing Echo?” he asks.

“I’ve been better,” is the amused reply coming from the other.

“Nice to see they gave you a sense of humor,” Fives jokes. He doesn’t think about the fact that maybe it’s too soon to make jokes like that, at least not before uttering it, but before he can apologize he feels Echo’s finger stabbing against his cheek.

“Shut up! I always had a sense of humor,” Echo replies, but he’s laughing, and Fives can’t help but to chuckle as well.

“Sure, whatever you say,” he mutters, before beginning to move up.

They can faintly hear the sound of an explosion under them, and they can only assume it’s the lab blowing up.

Good, at least they won’t have anything to conduct their horrid experiments anymore.

So, while the Techno Union got access to Echo’s brain, Echo in turn got access to their database. Fives wouldn’t exactly call it a fair exchange, but it’s better than nothing, not to mention how his knowledge has been what has just saved them.

Echo is now strong enough to walk, though he still leans heavily on Fives’ shoulder to do so. He had offered to keep carrying him but he refused.

Fives understands: sometimes you just don’t want to feel like a burden, even though he would never consider Echo as such.

Rex constantly turns behind to check on him, even though he doesn’t say anything - probably in order not to tire Echo out too much. The three of them will surely get a talk later; it’s not something Fives is particularly looking forward too, but he knows that it’ll have to happen sooner or later.

He just wants to enjoy having his vod back, is that too much to ask?

“So, how do we escape from here exactly, Echo?”

“Yeah, is there a safe way out of here?”

Echo chuckles.

“Well, there is a way.” A cough. “But you’re not gonna like it.”

If anything, Fives is glad to see that the Techno Union hasn’t taken away Echo’s craziness out of him. Does he really expect them to just walk on this pipe, a pipe that, let’s be clear, is very much high in a way that, would any of them fall, they are surely going to _die_ , just to get to the landing pad? Oh, Fives has missed him so much.

They’re not even sure there’s a ship on the other side. They might just get there and find nothing, but it’s not like they have a better plan.

Nobody’s that excited about this prospect, just as Echo predicted, but they have no choice but to follow him.

“Need any help, Echo?” Fives asks, making Echo huff.

“You don’t need to coddle me, you know?” he says.

“I’m not coddling you, you’ve just been inside a stasis chamber for about a year so excuse me for worrying about your physical state, ok?!”

It wasn’t nice for him to say, and he knows it. He sighs then, lowering his gaze.

“I’m sorry,” he apologizes, “I’m just worried.”

“I know,” Echo replies, voice softer this time, “But I’m getting better, ok?”

“Ok.”

“And I can take care of myself.”

He knows, Fives knows it well. He shakes his head.

“Yeah, I know vod.”

Then Fives steps away, bowing at gesturing towards the pipe.

“After you.”

Echo chuckles, beginning to step onto it.

“Can’t believe they’ve finally taught you manners,” he whispers, but Fives still hears him.

“Hey!”

They’re halfway through the pipe when they see in front of them droids marching towards their position. Kriff.

They can’t even go back because there are droids there too! They’ve been trapped!

Thankfully Tech has an idea: they can call the creatures that have brought them there to leave. The only problem is how they should get on them. Tech says to jump, but they can’t can they?

Skywalker of course is the first one to go with it, because this is the kind of craziness he’d pull. For a moment Fives is afraid they’re gonna see their general plummet to his death, but he manages to get onto one of the Keeradaks.

The second one to go, unexpectedly, is Echo. Fives shouts uselessly after him, reaching for him with one hand as if he could actually be able to pull him up, but he’s too far already. Thankfully, he too manages to hold on one of the beasts, so at least he’s safe.

Well, there’s no other choice…

Fives jumps.

He doesn’t scream while he does so, whatever the others will tell you is a lie. He heroically jumps and perfectly lands on the beast, not at all holding for dear life.

Hey, he made it!

There’s only one problem now: those damned droids can fly too. Fives can’t even do anything about it because he either shoots or he holds on, and he’d rather not fall. General Skywalker is right: they need to shake those things off.

“Echo!” he calls out in this mess, “You good?”

“Never better!” he replies, sounding like he’s having the time of his life. Lucky him.

Despite everything, Fives can’t help but to smile. It’s good that Echo’s recovering his good mood already.

Besides he’s not wrong, this _is_ fun.

“Where should we go?” Rex asks, or better, shouts, at general Skywalker. Yeah, they can’t exactly keep flying around like this; they need a secure place that they can use as base.

“We have no other choice!” Skywalker replies, “Let’s get back to the village!”

It’s the only choice they have, since getting to the ship now would mean that the droids would destroy it, leaving them stranded in a hostile planet. Still…

“The Poletecs are not going to like it,” Fives can’t help but to comment, remembering what they have told them as soon as they got there about not wanting anything to do with their war.

Yeah, they’re not going to be happy about this…

As predicted, they aren’t happy about this at all, but they manage to convince them to help them. Well, captain Rex does.

What did he do? Simple: he finally exploded. He let out all the anger that he’s always kept inside as he spoke, as he made the Poletec leader see what they have done to Echo. His vod looked so vulnerable as he let himself be scrutinized under those flabbergasted gaze, and yet he didn’t falter, determined. Fives is so proud of him.

The Techno Union might be playing the neutral part, but they have chosen sides. Now it’s the Poletecs’ turn to choose, and they do.

“Couldn’t have said it better,” Skywalker says, complimenting Rex, and Fives can’t help but to agree.

“See?” he says to Echo, voice proud, “Our captain’s still got it.”

“I can see that,” the other replies, chuckling, “Some things just don’t change, don’t they?”

“Yeah…” Fives replies, and it’s then that he realizes that Echo still doesn’t know about the Chancellor, about the chips, about anything really. He should use this time to finally inform him about all the things he’s missed…

“I hope this works, because I see forces coming,” Crosshair warns them, voice worried enough to consequently worry everyone else, “More than we can handle alone.”

Well, looks like their debrief will have to wait.

At least the Poletecs are helping them, so their number is greater than before - not by much giving their inferior firepower, but it’s still something.

What they have an advantage on, however, is the terrain, that the Polects know well. They can plan an ambush.

Before they go their separate ways, Echo with general Skywalker and Crosshair while Fives remains on the ground with the others, Fives hands Echo something.

“Here.”

“This is--”

“My blaster, I know,” Fives replies, continuing then, amused, when he sees Echo’s surprise on his face, “What? You thought we were gonna send you into battle without a weapon? Besides, I have another one.”

Echo accepts the blaster, grateful.

“And here I thought that I was going to punch some droids…”

“Didn’t know you were Commander Cody,” Fives jokes, making Echo laugh.

“Does he still do that?”

“Of course he does,” Fives shrugs, “Though he’s more of a kicking guy and you know it. It’s those heathens of his men that are fond of punching.”

“Like you aren’t a heathen yourself,” Echo retorts, chuckling at Fives’ offended gasp.

“Shut up!” he says, but after a moment of silence, he continues, this time serious, “Be careful.”

The smile vanishes from Echo’s mouth, a determined expression taking its place.

“You too.”

They hide, letting the droids land. Once they’re grouped enough, Skywalker gives his signal to Wrecker, who single-handedly pushes a boulder down on them, successfully killing a bunch.

The Poletecs charge and the rest of the droids does too. It begins.

Fives has to admit it, the natives are not so bad. They’re handling themselves pretty well against the droids. To be quite honest he had thought that it was going to be way worse than this.

Still, now it’s time for their intervention.

He shoots down as many droids as he can. Maybe he’s not as showy as the rest of the squad, but it’s efficient; he had thought about doing something not to be outshined by the others, but this isn’t the right moment for that kind of competition. Maybe another time, when their life isn’t on the line.

Sometimes he steals a few glances at Echo, but he seems to be handling himself pretty well, handling his blaster like he was fresh of ARC training. That’s good, that’s very good.

Things were going pretty well, then the Octuptarras came. It keeps getting better and better.

They run for cover, but it’s not enough. They need to take these things down and fast.

“Fives, Hunter, Wrecker, you’re with me,” Rex says, and they follow him. Four against one might seem unfair, but given the size of that thing Fives can say that things are pretty even.

No matter how much they shoot, however, they’re barely grazing it, and let’s not talk about also all the dodging they have to make to be still in one piece; they have to be constantly on the move. At least the general seems to be having a good time cutting off the thing’s cannons, rending it practically useless.

“That works, but how are we going to get up there?” Rex asks. As an immediate response, Wrecker walks to him and Rex, who has understood already what he wants to do, tries to make him desist, but no matter how many times he says no, there’s nothing he can do: Wrecker picks him up and, without a second thought, throws him at the Octuptarra. If the situation were different, Fives would’ve lost it at the way his fearless captain screams, but he’s too busy being picked up next.

To be quite honest, he doesn’t mind being thrown; it’s actually kind of fun. He doesn’t understand why Rex doesn’t like it.

He manages to hold onto one of the cannons, and soon he’s joined by Hunter, though the thing begins to spin in an attempt to shake them off. Thankfully that’s not the case as they all hold steady.

Aiming while holding for dear life isn’t easy, but Fives manages to take down the eye, and by the sounds of it he guesses Rex and Hunter have done the same as well. At least now it’s blind.

Skywalker’s idea is great, still he could’ve warned them that he was going to push the other Octuptarra against theirs! All they can do is to hold on for dear life as they begin their descent, hoping they won’t be trapped under the debris.

When Fives crashes, he feels a lot of pain, but he still finds himself able to move his body, so he doesn’t think anything’s broken - he’s still going to let Kix check on him when they come back just to be sure, because unlike _certain people_ , he doesn’t hide his injuries, except for a few times but there was an important reason behind that… anyway, let’s carry on.

He’s helped up by Rex.

“You ok, Fives?” he asks while the other dusts off his armor.

“Yeah,” he replies. There’s no point in worrying him for something he’s not even sure about.

Around them, the Poletecs start cheering for their victory. As soon as the Octuptarras were down, the rest of the droids have retreated, so at least they don’t have that to worry about anymore.

No, there’s something else to worry about now. Fives joins Echo immediately, ignoring whatever’s going on between the general and the Poletecs’ leader, worried that he might’ve sustained some kind of injury. You can imagine the relief when he sees that not only he’s safe, but he also seems to be in a better condition than him. Figures.

“It’s good to be back,” Echo can’t help but to say, looking like he’s this close from crying for the happiness, and frankly it’s the same for Fives.

“It’s good to have you back,” he says then, hands on the other’s shoulder, squeezing them. He’s real. He’s truly real. “Vod, I’m so sorry. If I--”

“I don’t want to hear none of that, Fives,” Echo interrupts him, “We knew what we were getting into from the start.”

Fives appreciates that Echo is not mad at him, but still this doesn’t shake the guilt he feels for having left him for dead at the Citadel.

Before he can say something that he knows will only make Echo mad - he always hated being pitied - he finally, _kriffing finally_ , hugs him properly, squeezing him in his arms. He’s so thin, now he can feel it even better, but he’s here at least, that’s what matters. After a moment of tense surprise, Echo melts into the embrace, going to close his arms around Fives’ shoulders. He’s shaking, Fives can feel it, but he doesn’t comment on it, supporting his brother’s weight in his arms.

They’re so taken in each other that they don’t hear the steps that are approaching them until captain Rex, now on their left, clears his throat.

“Could I have some time with Echo too?” he asks, his tone obviously teasing. When Fives and Echo turn to look at him, they can see that he’s smirking, something that he does as well.

“Mmmh…”he mumbles, pretending to think about it, “No offense sir, but I think not.”

They all chuckle, and Fives and Echo pull away, although reluctantly. They have both misses that special contact between them so much, and now that they’ve gotten a taste of it again, it’s hard not to succumb in the temptation and stay like this forever. Still, they do need to leave.

They’re about to make their way to the ship, when Echo says something.

“Fives, Rex… Thanks, for coming after me.” The way he says it is horrible: it’s like he didn’t think they would try to find him. It’s so sad that they’ve spent all their - although short - life being told that they’re expendable, so much that when they’re shown genuine kindness, they don’t know how to react.

Things will get better for them. They _have_ too: everything is changing, and people are finally starting to recognize the part they’ve played in this war, starting to recognize their worth not only as soldiers, but as people too.

Speaking of change…

“Let’s get inside,” he says, softly, draping one arm over Echo’s shoulder as they resume to walk, “There’s a lot that you missed.”

Echo doesn’t say anything at first, but he does send him a curious gaze.

“Good things, I hope.”

Fives chuckles.

“Oh, you have no idea.”


	4. Interlude

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just wanted to write a small interlude before going to the next episode. I felt like Echo and Fives needed to talk.

Unfortunately they don’t have a medic in their squad, so they’ll have to wait before Echo gets a good medical check-up. Kix will take care of him in no time once they get back, however, Fives is sure of it.

At least they have found a nice set of clothes that he can wear. The shirt and the pants are reminiscing of Kamino, but it’s all they’ve got; Echo would much prefer wearing armor - he’s a clone, he feels naked without it - but still, it’s better than nothing.

Fives hasn’t left his side not even for a moment, but he doesn’t say anything. He just stays there, observing him, and Echo observes him in return. He looks happy, but also so tired; Echo can tell that these lasts days must’ve been hard for him. Honestly, he can’t blame him: he’d feel the same if their positions were switched.

There are so many things he wants to ask him, but he’ll wait until they’re completely alone, knowing that Fives will have an easier time opening up that way.

Eventually the rest of the clones and general Skywalker retire to the cockpit, leaving Fives and Echo alone. Only then the sigh that was pushing against his lips finally breaks free from Fives’ mouth. It’s been a long day.

Echo and Fives look at each other. It’s just for a moment, then they’re back hugging. They’ve always been touchy, especially Fives, and years of separation have greatly increased their need to be glued to the other. Fives is still wearing his armor, which isn’t exactly comfortable, but Echo will take what he can get; something might still happen and he’d rather have Fives ready to fight with some form of protection than wearing only his blacks.

It’s Fives the one who breaks the silence.

“I should ask you how you’re doing, but I’m afraid it’s a dumb question.”

“It would be, yes,” Echo chuckles, “But that doesn’t mean you can’t ask it.”

“Oh, ok then,” Fives stutters, sending a half-smile his way. “How are you doing?”

“I’ve been worse,” Echo shrugs, gaining a friendly push from Fives.

“You’re a di’kut, an absolute shabuir!”

They both laugh, memories of similar times spent bickering like this that immediately come to mind. Ah, it feels like it’s been so long since then; it has been, but it feels like even longer has passed between then and now.

“So…” Echo begins then, curious gaze on Fives, “Mind telling me what I missed?”

It’s finally time to tell his story, still Fives finds himself sighing, because even though it ends well, it’s still not a happy tale.

“Get ready,” he says, “It’s going to be a looong ride.”

Not knowing how much time they actually have before something inevitably happens, Fives decides to give Echo more of a summary of what happened, also because he wants to protect Echo from some of this stuff. This is what he tells himself at least; the truth is that even though he tries not to show it, all the recent events have taken a toll on him. Still, he tries to keep sharp, because people are counting on him and he can’t keep them down!

The less he relives about these last months the better, however. He doesn’t want to break down right in front of Echo, not when Echo’s himself doesn’t feel that great at all. He must be strong for him and support him, not the other way around.

Of course, however, Echo notices some weird gaps in his narration, and that’s not all: he didn’t bother with it when he noticed it at first, only because Fives was checking his arm for any injury and Echo still had many things to adjust to, but he did see something on Fives’ body that wasn’t there before.

“Who’s Tup?” he asks, eyes Fives’ left forearm, where he saw the name inked on his skin.

At the sound of that name, Fives visible flinches, well, visibly according to Echo who’s known him since decantment. This must not be a nice tale.

“He was a vod,” Fives mutters. The usage of the past tense doesn’t go unnoticed. “His chip broke and he lost control of himself. I tried to save him but…”

His voice cracks, and Echo immediately stretches his hands towards his, gently squeezing them. The contact manages to ground Fives a bit. At least he’s not shaking as much when he continues.

“Alright, let me start again.”

He tells him everything he left out before, about how exactly he uncovered the chips conspiracy. It’s painful to relieve these memories, but he owes that to Echo.

When he’s done, he can finally sigh of relief. That was a lot.

“Wow…” is all Echo is able to say. It’s clearly taking him more than he would’ve liked to digest this all. Eh, Fives doesn’t blame him. “ _Fuck_.”

“You can say that again,” the other chuckles. The most incredible thing about this is that they both survived all these huge events, and now live to tell the tale; Fives won’t lie and say that he never thought that he would’ve died during this war, so maybe that’s why he’s so bewildering to him that he’s still breathing.

“They’d be so proud of you.”

Fives is still so closed inside his head that even though he hears Echo’s talking, he doesn’t quite catch it.

“W-What?”

Echo doesn’t reply back immediately, opting instead to take Five’s hand, gently squeezing him.

“Droidbait, Cutup, Hevy… They’d all be proud of you,” he repeats then, fighting back the tears. Back at the Citadel, he thought that he was about to join then, and then…

Still, he stands by what he says. Fives has saved all his brothers; they’d surely be proud of him, of this Echo has no doubts.

“I…”

Fives doesn’t know what to say or do, except staring at Echo. Would they really be? Fives hopes so.

The thought of them is a constant in his mind, but more than often he’s had to push them away in order to focus on the present, which he knows is not wrong, but he still feels guilty about it.

“I miss them,” he admits in the end, gaze downcast. Echo squeezes his hand, caressing its palm with his thumb.

“I miss them too.”

Things would certainly have been different if the old Domino squad was still all together, but Echo supposes things could be worse: from what Fives has told him, he’s risked his life many times. What if he had died too? That would’ve left Echo as the last man standing, a role that he wishes he’ll never have to assume.

It was already so lonely being used as a database from the Techno Union, even though of course at the time he didn’t realize it - he couldn’t think at all. Now that he’s free of their control, however, it all comes crashing down on him. The pain, the solitude, the tortures…

He hadn’t even realized he was shaking until he finds himself in Fives’ arms as he keeps him close, not leaving him not ever for a second.

“Everything’s going to be alright, Echo, we’re here now.”

It’s true. As always, Fives is right: it will be hard to adjust to a normal life, to heal, but Echo isn’t alone anymore and can count on the support of his brothers and friends. They won’t abandon him.

“Yes, we’re going to be fine.”

**Author's Note:**

> You can find me on tumblr [@bi-naesala](https://bi-naesala.tumblr.com) and on twitter [@vault_emblem](https://twitter.com/vault_emblem)


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